Revelator: Second Phase--Corruption
by GunLaw
Summary: The devastating end of Revelator: First Phase-Trials and Tribulations leave our heroes in a pit of confusion and defeat, but they will need to stand up again in order to face the opposing side known as Corruption. All kingdoms are in danger, and the world itself is on its last knees. However, Corruption holds the key of all the answers our heroes desire.


The somber snow fell onto the desolate world that lacked any sort of life, and without life, it never responded to the touch of the snow, the howl of the wind, and it never felt true warmth from the reserved afternoon sun. The grey clouds assisted the plight of the snowflakes fluttering and swaying down to the barren land below, seeking to revive what was lost, but alas, it wasn't within their power to give live. All life was dead; however, the remaining humans—the last of humanity still lived in demise and awaited the inevitable.

From the window, she stared at the decimated city at the center of the valley she was at, and with each passing moment, the forgotten city seemed to rebuild itself as her memories of it filled in. Before she could wander mindlessly in her head, a slight tap came from the glass table in front of her. In surprise, she snapped her eyes up at a tall, slender, and glasses-wearing man with a scrubby beard.

"Hot chocolate," he pointed at the black mug in front of her. "I figured you would want it after fumbling through the snow earlier. Have you calmed down now?"

She didn't respond. Instead, she grabbed the handle of the mug and gently pressed the rim of it against her pink, chapped lips to accept the sweet, but warming hot liquid. He sighed to himself and sat across from her in a chair, "I'll take that as a yes."

Soon, she sat down the mug, but paused briefly before saying, "Who…am I?"

"You are Sarah Valentine, but well, in _that world_ , you're known as Shiba."

"Sarah…Valentine?" she said to herself for confirmation.

"Yes, Sarah," he nodded. "You have a normal reaction when compared to everyone else here at _Last Stand_. This place is a haven from the _Shade_."

The terms he spoke of confused her, but she remembered their past conversation and how he mentioned the _Revelators_. Boldly, she stared up at him with her poised teal eyes and asked, "You said something about the Revelators earlier. Tell me more. These memories flowing into me…I don't fully understand them."

"I should start from the beginning, I suppose," his jaws tightened.

"Yes, please," Sarah pleaded, pulling strands of her short, blonde hair behind her pierced right ear. "I have to know the truth. Everything I've known up until now was a lie and this is reality. I have the _right_ to know."

"Prepare yourself," he pushed up his glasses and stared at her eyes. "What you are about to learn is what occurred a thousand years ago that was known as… _Age of the End_."

* * *

The vast forest rustled and the leaves of the many trees shuffled in unison as the gentle wind scurried by kindly, kicking up the leaves on the ground up to their families dangling from oaky branches. The sky resembled the ocean by how it took an aquatic color and the sun glimmered beneath the waves—surveying the world below. The animals of the forest continued their lives normally, and as they did, the boy sitting at an opening in the forest did as well. He listened intently, weighing the words of the wind as they passed by his ears and becoming absorbed by the earth under him. It was a simple meditation that he has done constantly before training, but suddenly, something changed inside him like always.

"Law!"

The sharp voice of a girl stabbed his ears and a hazy image flashed before his eyes, shaping up as a girl he knew that was dead on the ground in front of him. He grabbed his chest and welling up inside with a furious wave of anger as she peacefully laid there as a cold body, and over her was his _enemy_. The one who took her away from him and destroyed everything around him. If it wasn't for the snap of a twig from nearby, he would have been stuck in his head—fighting with an emotion he couldn't satisfy.

He held up his head and looked up at the ocean-sky above, feeling the sun wash over him with warmth he hadn't felt in ages. He didn't pay too much attention to the spectator nearby, but they were slightly offended by the lack of response. Without warning, the spectator threw a rock at the boy's head and shouted, "Eagle! The hell are you doing out here?! Where's my breakfast, kiddo?!"

"Master, I'd like it if you'd just called me, Law, ya' know," the boy sighed, rubbing the small bump that created from the rock. "Also, sorry about breakfast. I have a lot on my mind."

"You still do after one year? You really have to move on."

Law clicked his teeth and faced the woman who walked up to him. She was dressed in slender leather clothing that practically exposed her feminine assets; however, despite the tightness of her clothing, her skill with a bow was among top professionals. _Loftia the Bow Master_ was Law's personal mentor when it came to bow mastery, but also the only person he could turn to in a crisis. He didn't know who to trust after the events that transpired a year ago, and time has healed him, but not completely from the scars on his memories

She held out her hand with a smile, "C'mon. We have work to do."

" _Crosshairs_ again?" Law asked dully.

"Crosshairs~," she grinned. "You're going to love what I setup today!"

Soon, he was on his feet with her help and quickly she jogged off in the direction of their home past the trees, "If you complete the training quick today, I'll cook dinner!"

"D-Dinner?!" he said in shock, slightly drooling from the corners of his mouth at the last time she cooked a seasoned, smoking steak.

He was going to follow her, but when he took a step forward, he felt a sharp pang come from the side of his skull. A strange, decrypted voice shot into his ears in unison.

 _Wake up._

"Who—" he looked around in utter surprise, but there was no one.

"I'm really losing it."

* * *

"Klaipeda is slowly getting back on its feet."

Six and Shura had been helping bring back Klaipeda to its former glory, but the destruction was so catastrophic that the entire city needed to be remodeled from scratch. After the first week of the destruction, there was the _Mourning_ —a funeral for all the citizens that perished. Soon after, the people came together to revive the proud city they lost and strengthen Klaipeda's kingdom once more. The progress was stable, and the Guardian and his assistant watched patiently as it came back together—piece by piece. They wanted to protect Klaipeda from any potential invaders, for the other kingdoms have also been on edge and on thin ice with Klaipeda for the past few years. Also, there were other things they needed to confirm and assess before seeking the true threats.

Shura held the silver glass containing her bloody wine carefully, slowly swirling the liquid around playfully, "Sure, the city is back, but what about the power behind it? We've confirmed ourselves that King Vermillion is a Revelator after the _Fall of Klaipeda_. As the observers of Revelators and the _Guiders of Peace_ , we will need to have him under our thumb so he doesn't do anything reckless. He has a whole kingdom at his disposal."

"Very true," Six nodded, but his focus waned as the night dragged on in his new home. "Still, the situation we're in is direr than we think. The Revelators are not together, and some of them have turned. I'm skeptical of those who have turned. They must be plotting. Kuroi seemed to be dealing with them, or at least, he was stalked by them."

"Kuroi, huh? That bloody damn idiot," Shura shook her head. "The fool almost killed Vyne! Can we really trust him?!"

"You don't have to trust him or not," Six waved her feisty tone away. "I believe in his loyalty to us. It's unfortunate that he's drunk on dragon blood and that it has corrupted his body, but Kuroi himself hasn't totally change. He has always been out for blood, whether friend or foe. We will just have to build up precautious."

"Whatever you say, Mr. Guardian~," Shura gulped her wine down. "You need some stronger stuff, dude. This isn't the type of stuff to get a lady drunk, ya' know!"

"It wasn't to get you drunk, idiot. Just go to sleep already."

* * *

"L-Lady Mikai, a-are you absolutely sure about this?!"

Mikai strutted down the marbled hallway of Vermillion's castle with a leather traveling suitcase in hand, but following close behind was Argos—the son of Vermillion, who had taken a strange interest in her after the Fall of Klaipeda. She twirled around and walked backwards while looking up at him, "Certain. People need my help, so it's time I went and assisted the other towns of Klaipeda."

"I will come with you."

"Argos, please," Mikai waved her hand in annoyance. "Stay with your father and build your kingdom anew again. I promise that this isn't the last you've seen of me."

"Will you be okay making it to Rossberg? I've heard mention of bandits ambushing passing travelers on the path from here to Rossberg," Argos questioned strongly, his eyes worried beyond reason.

"I will deal with the bandits myself then," she said simply. "I've trained for a whole year to make up for my weaknesses. If I can't beat some local bandits and set them straight, I don't deserve the title of Cleric. Please, understand my emotions."

"I'm…just worried is all," he said softly.

She stopped walking and he did as well, staring down at her silently with a stern expression, but despite the expression, his handsome features were plain as day from his sharp chin to his misty midnight eyes. Everything about his figure was sculptured by a talent artist, but his emotions were ragged and not controlled when he was in her presence; therefore, she wanted to distance herself to have him understand his role. Due to Mikai healing and serving Vermillion's people in their time of need by taking care of them, Argos kept his eye on her and even assisted her with her endeavors. He grew close to her and treated her like a dear friend he never truly had as someone who was royalty, but the biggest thing about her was her kindness to others because it reminded him of his own mother.

"Very well," Argos nodded with a simple smile. "I believe…I understand. I will do my part here, Lady—"

She interrupted him with a giggle, "Just call me, Mikai. You really need to drop the formalities, Argos. It's been a…full year now."

As she came closer to the end of her sentence, her eyes wandered away from him and towards the towering window beside them in the royal hallway. She stared out at the azure sky and then down to the new bustling city of Klaipeda, but the image of the night everything changed took the place of it. Rubble on top of more rubble took the frame of the houses and wickedly a mysterious cloaked figure stood among the rubble—pointing his finger at Mikai.

"Are you alright?"

She snapped out of her daze thanks to Argos, "Yes. I am…fine. Take care, Argos. I shall return soon."

She turned away from him and continued down the long hallway. Argos reached out his hand and wanted to say more words that had been concealed in his heart, but he simply felt the time wasn't right. He needed to complete his duty before expressing his true feelings, and so, they must walk different paths for the time being.

* * *

The traveler panted as he came to the mountain top, but what awaited him at the top was something he didn't expect. There was nothing around him but rocks and dubious holes that seemed to hint to a fight that had transpired long ago. The sun sat the horizon and took a chilling orange color while the sky was streaked with purple, orange, and azure blue. The sight was nothing awe-inspiring to him, and neither was his surroundings. He looked out from the mountaintop, but the only thing in sight was the forest stretching around the Kingdom of Klaipeda and the border of Orsha in the distance. There was the town of Rossberg north of his location, but his interested laid in where the _Relics_ were.

He pulled off his cloak's hood and allowed his hair to dance in tempest with the aggressive wind. His eyes were agitated and his balled his hands, "Where the hell is it? Could the information _he_ gave me was false? That fucking demon."

The traitor, Rhyme, carried himself over to a boulder's side on the mountain top and decided to rest as he cleared his head. He had no time to waste, of course, but his health was slowly declining as the _prophecy_ drew closer to the destined time. The war between Revelators and _The Corruption_ was about to begin and he needed a Relic—a destructive gift from the goddesses and gods to kill them all in one swoop. It was better if they died, is what he believed, because living here was hell itself, for they would always run from the truth. The truth that this world wasn't what it seemed to be, and that the true world was the actual one in peril. Everyone was weak in his eyes, but he believed in Shiba. The one he had to kill first to release her from this internal suffering of running. Now, it is his duty to release the others.

 _Trust only myself. I am the Rhyme who has delivered everyone safely from this world. It is time I did the rest._

* * *

 _Dear Erokhi,_

 _I'm afraid we must go our separate ways. I cannot sit still and wait for your recovery, and honestly, I fear what you have become because of your injury. Nothing is the same anymore. We can no longer mindlessly have banters with Shiba and Law, and Rhyme will never be accepted again because of what he did, but you…you've changed. I was willing to give everything to you and make this work, but you were drunk on revenge. It's something I couldn't bear to watch because that's not the Erokhi I know. I am going away and I don't really know if I'll ever come back. I'm going to where my heart takes me, and right now, my heart wishes to be away from you so you can heal and decide your best move forward. It is time, Erokhi, my love. Stand up._

 _Love,_

 _Mikai._

"If only…it was that simple, Mikai," Erokhi combed through his hair in frustration.

He glanced over the right side of his body, examining his missing limbs and gawking at his disabled situation. As much as he wanted to move from his bed, run after Mikai, and continue with her, he simply couldn't keep up. When she took two steps, he would have to take half of one. She was moving too fast for him, and his hatred swallowed him whole and pushed his only companions away from him. He was deeply sorry and wounded emotionally.

Erokhi was prepared to get up from his bed, but a knock came at his door suddenly. He stared at it for a while, and eventually roughly said, "Come in."

A burst of light came into his room as the door was opened, and when it did, a man in a flashy crimson robe appeared at the edge of the light coming from the other side of his door. Slowly, the light died and Erokhi's eyes adjusted to the wondrous man. The man himself grinned from ear-to-ear, "Wow, you really look like shit, Erokhi. That Guardian sure was right about your predicament."

Erokhi grabbed the hilt of sword beside his bed, "Who are you?"

"Relax, relax~! I'm Vyne, The Librarian. I'm a fellow Revelator such as yourself, but I got a ton of experience over you. I'm here to help fix that arm and leg problem of yours."

"Wait, Vyne? Six has talked about you before. He came over here a month ago blabbering about you," Erokhi explained.

"That's me," Vyne nodded. "Now then, it's about time I lend a… _hand_."

"Stop with the damn jokes," Erokhi glared. "Just fix me up."

"Of course," Vyne suddenly smiled slyly. "However, you will need to do something for me afterwards. I have some loose ends that needs tying up."

"State your terms."

"I need you to defeat Kuroi, The BOSS Slayer."

Erokhi's eyes went wide, "Why me?"

"I'll answer after I fix you up. It's going to take a while to find substitute for your arm and leg, so we'll have plenty of time to talk about it."

"Very well," he nodded, releasing his grip on his hilt. "Just get me back in shape. I…"

A vision of Rhyme flashed through his mind and his heart clenched and he grew angrier by the second, but the smile of Mikai took over and his heart relaxed. He bit his lip and said, "I need to find someone. I have to apologize while I have the chance."

"Alright. You have my word."


End file.
